Pre-Conference Workshop - 28th July

BUILDING ADAPTABLE ORGANISATIONS DURING AI DISRUPTION

Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping how organisations operate, make decisions, and manage workforces. As disruption accelerates, leaders are under pressure to adapt faster while maintaining workforce capability, operational resilience, trust, and performance.

This practical masterclass explores how organisations can strengthen adaptability during periods of rapid technological and organisational change. Delegates will examine how leading organisations are responding to AI disruption by building resilient teams, redesigning workforce capability, and creating cultures that can respond effectively to uncertainty.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• Build adaptable teams and organisational capability during change

• Strengthen workforce resilience during transformation and uncertainty

• Balance innovation, performance, and workforce trust

• Improve decision making during rapid disruption

• Identify barriers slowing organisational adaptation

• Explore practical approaches to leading AI driven transformation

• Build cultures that support continuous learning and adaptability

Summit Day 1

9:00 AM: Welcome to Country

9:05 AM: Opening Remarks from Chair

She is a staunch advocate of equality for women in business and believes women should be helping other women every chance they get. 

Dana established Konnect Learning in 2013 and the Leadership Institute in 2017. Since then she has advocated for equality for women in all aspects of her entrepreneurial and professional life – in particular by chairing and assisting the production team in the development of TLI’s Women in Leadership line of events.

SESSION 1
9:10 AM: Opening Keynote: Making AI Work Beyond the Hype. What Leaders Need to Get Right Before Scaling AI

Organisations across every sector are investing in AI, yet many are still struggling to turn pilots, tools and experimentation into measurable business value.
In this opening keynote, Jon Whittle draws on three decades in AI, his leadership of CSIRO’s Data61, and the practical frameworks from his new book AI for Business. A Guide to AI Adoption to explore what separates successful AI adoption from costly distraction.

Jon will examine where AI is creating real value, why some initiatives fail to move beyond proof of concept, and what leaders need to get right before scaling AI across the organisation. From choosing the right use cases to building responsible governance, managing risk, improving productivity and aligning AI with organisational purpose, this session gives leaders a clear, practical foundation for making AI work in the real world.

10:10 AM: IT’S TIME FOR NETWORKING!

10:30 AM: Morning Tea

SESSION 2
10:50 AM: From AI Ambition to Business Value

Artificial intelligence is no longer an emerging technology. For many organisations, the challenge is no longer whether to invest in AI, but how to turn that investment into measurable business outcomes.

Drawing on his experience leading enterprise transformation and innovation initiatives across complex organisations, Ketan Chowhan explores why many AI projects struggle to move beyond experimentation and what leaders can do differently.

This session examines the foundations required for successful AI adoption, from identifying high value use cases and aligning technology with business priorities to managing organisational complexity, scaling innovation, and delivering measurable operational improvements.

Attendees will gain practical insights into how organisations can move beyond pilots and proof of concepts to create sustainable business value through AI enabled transformation.

SESSION 3
11:40 AM:  International Keynote: Leading Human Capability in an AI Enabled Workforce

As AI transforms how organisations operate, the challenge for leaders is no longer just technology adoption. It is preparing people to adapt, learn, and thrive in rapidly changing environments.

This session explores how organisations can strengthen workforce capability, leadership confidence, and organisational resilience in an AI enabled world. Viktor Jinman shares lessons on balancing digital transformation with human adaptability, ensuring people remain at the centre of innovation and organisational performance.

12:40 PM Lunch

SESSION 4
1:40 PM: Case Study: Making Digital Transformation Work for People and Performance

Digital transformation often fails when organisations focus too heavily on systems and not enough on people. Sustainable innovation requires workforce trust, adaptability, and cultural alignment.

In this session, Paul Murphy explores how organisations can balance innovation with human impact while navigating transformation at scale. Through practical case studies and operational insights, this session examines how leaders can build cultures where employees feel supported, engaged, and capable of adapting to change.

SESSION 5
2:30 PM: Exclusive Keynote: Why Human Leadership Still Matters in the Age of AI

As organisations rapidly adopt AI technologies, uniquely human capabilities are becoming even more valuable. Leadership judgement, creativity, adaptability, communication, and emotional intelligence remain critical differentiators during periods of disruption.

Drawing on his experience leading one of Australia’s most digitally advanced organisations, Viktor Dominello explores how leaders can embrace innovation while maintaining human connection, organisational trust, and workforce confidence. This session examines how organisations can adapt successfully without losing the human capability that drives long term success.

3:20 PM Afternoon Tea

SESSION 6
3:40 PM: Closing Keynote: Simplifying at Speed. Building Safer Systems That Scale

As digital transformation accelerates, organisations face growing pressure to move quickly while maintaining trust, governance, and operational stability.

In this closing keynote, Kavita Mistry explores how AMP is simplifying complex systems, improving governance, and enabling safer decision making during periods of rapid technological change. This session examines how organisations can reduce operational friction, strengthen resilience, and scale innovation without increasing organisational risk.

4:30 PM Close of Conference

Summit Day 2 

9:00 AM: Opening remarks from chair

SESSION 1
9:10 AM: Leading Digital Transformation Without Losing Trust

As organisations accelerate digital transformation, leaders face growing pressure to balance innovation with workforce trust, governance, and community expectations.

In this session, Louise Baxter explores how organisations can lead responsible digital change while maintaining transparency, accountability, and human impact. Drawing on practical examples from the not for profit sector, this session examines how leaders can navigate rapid technological change without losing organisational trust or mission alignment.

SESSION 2
10:00 AM: Why Most AI Strategies Fail And What The Top 5% Do Differently

Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming a business imperative, yet many organisations are struggling to turn AI ambition into meaningful results. While investment in AI continues to grow, a significant number of initiatives fail to deliver the expected value due to poor adoption, unclear strategy, cultural resistance, and a lack of leadership alignment.

In this thought provoking keynote, Mark Cameron explores why some organisations are successfully transforming with AI while others remain trapped in experimentation, uncertainty, and fragmented initiatives.

Drawing on his work with executive teams, boards, and business leaders across Australia, Mark examines the common mistakes that derail AI strategies and reveals the leadership practices, organisational behaviours, and strategic decisions that distinguish the top performers.

Attendees will gain practical insights into building an AI ready organisation, leading transformation with confidence, aligning people and technology, and creating the conditions for sustainable competitive advantage in an increasingly AI driven world.

This session is essential for leaders seeking to move beyond AI enthusiasm and develop a clear roadmap for long term success.

10:50 AM: Morning Tea

SESSION 3
11:20 AM: Why Human Judgement Still Matters in an AI Powered World

AI can process information faster than ever before, but organisations still depend on human judgement to navigate uncertainty, ethics, culture, trust, and leadership complexity.

Drawing on decades of research into human intelligence and leadership adaptation, Dr Alan Thompson explores why human capability remains critical during AI transformation. This session examines how organisations can strengthen leadership thinking, workforce adaptability, and decision making in environments where technology is rapidly reshaping work.

SESSION 4: CASE STUDY. PEOPLE FIRST TRANSFORMATION
12:10 PM Making AI Transformation Work Across Your Organisation

Many organisations struggle to move from AI ambition to workforce adoption. Real transformation requires more than technology implementation. It requires trust, engagement, and organisational alignment.

In this session, Gary Ding explores how leaders can build workforce confidence during periods of technological disruption while ensuring innovation delivers practical business value. This session examines how organisations can bring employees with them through change rather than creating resistance, confusion, or transformation fatigue.

1:10 PM Lunch

SESSION 5
2:10 PM: When Failure Is Not an Option. Leading Digital Transformation in High Stakes Environments

In industries where operational mistakes can have serious human consequences, leaders face immense pressure to modernise systems while maintaining safety, accountability, and trust.

Drawing on experiences from healthcare transformation, Alistair Shearman explores how leaders can navigate complex digital change in high pressure environments where the cost of failure is significant. This session examines governance, operational resilience, workforce adaptation, and leadership accountability during critical transformation programs.

SESSION 6: EXCLUSIVE KEYNOTE
3:00 PM: Adapting Faster Than Change. Leading Organisations Through AI Disruption

As AI continues reshaping industries, organisations must learn to adapt continuously rather than treat transformation as a one off initiative.

This closing keynote explores how leaders can build adaptable organisations capable of navigating uncertainty, workforce disruption, rapid technological change, and evolving customer expectations. The session examines what separates organisations that successfully adapt from those that struggle to keep pace in the age of AI.

4:00 PM End of Conference

Post-Conference Workshops - 31st July

HUMAN LEADERSHIP IN THE AGE OF AI

As artificial intelligence reshapes the workplace, human capability is becoming more important, not less. Organisations are rapidly adopting AI to improve efficiency, automate processes, and accelerate decision making, but leadership, creativity, communication, and human judgement remain critical to long term success.

This practical workshop explores how leaders can strengthen the human capabilities that organisations need most during periods of rapid technological change. Delegates will examine how to build adaptable, collaborative, and high trust teams while navigating uncertainty, workforce disruption, and evolving ways of working.